


School daze

by agentofserenity



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: AU, Disability, Gen, Kid Fic, May adopted them both, autistic Daisy Johnson, autistic Jemma Simmons
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-07
Updated: 2018-07-18
Packaged: 2019-03-01 11:12:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13293630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentofserenity/pseuds/agentofserenity
Summary: AU where May adopted Jemma and Skye as young children, following their journey together as a family. Both girls are struggling to find where they fit, but thankfully they have an awesome mom now who can guide them





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a bit of a tester to see if people would be interested in more of this verse. Jemma is inspired by my own struggles being autistic but seen as “gifted” with intellect and how these two things stereotypically clash with peoples ideas of what each bring, I’ll go into that in later chapters. I decided to make Skye non verbal as this is a trait very seldom covered even in autistic fics, and the possibilities of a tech minded Skye sassing everyone out using her aac app was a great concept to me.

Skye ran up to May as the woman waited at the gate for her like she did every day once school had finished. She had said goodbye to her teacher, put her school AAC device safely away in her locker and got her backpack before going outside. The new backpack still lay slightly differently on her shoulders, it had been tough when her old one broke but she guessed that she had used it almost daily for around two and half years so eventually everything needed replacing. It didn’t make it any less hard and she was till in the slight traditional period but May had rung round every store she could trying to find an exact replica for her. Sadly that didn’t work out but Skye felt she was ready to take the plunge and with both her mom and sisters help she picked out an awesome new one. It was turquoise, her favourite colour, with rainbow sequins on the front pocket which when you brushed them with your hand they changed into a different colour and revealed a pattern. Skye had squealed happily when she first tried this out and knew she had to get that, she also had a matching pencil case to go with it and couldn’t help but smile when she saw May “sneakily” buy an extra set for later on. 

Skye finally approached May, gently rubbing her face affectionately on her moms shoulder as her greeting. The woman smiled gently at this and placed a kiss on her forehead, taking her hand as they walked back to the car which was only a few paces away.

“How was school today?” May asked and Skye frowned, pulling away from her mom with a barely audible whine which the woman knew meant it hadn’t been a good day. She stored that information away for later, gently patting Skye’s shoulder in sympathy before opening the car door for her. Jemma was already sat on the other side, rocking slightly in her seat. She had her ear defenders on and was wearing a chew necklace, the pendant of which was currently in her mouth. May realised that she seemed content more than stressed, her other girls day had gone better by all accounts so she was just stimming to wind down. Skye climbed into her seat and May helped her belt up, handing her the fully charged tablet she used as an AAC device whilst they were at home, since the girl had a separate unit for school.

Melinda had her qualms and a lot of sleepless night when it came to deciding on schools for the girls, she had to consider their needs and what they could cope with and what would be best to allow them to grow and reach their full potentials. Given her high IQ and general intellect, Jemma went to a mainstream school where she was on track to graduate early, already several years ahead of other similar aged pupils. However, May had to fight to make sure Jemma still received the support and help she needed. No matter her IQ, if the girl didn’t get some support and help things could develop badly. She had pulled her out of the first school due to horrendous bullying and homeschooled her for six months but Jemma was best in a classroom environment and May knew she needed teachers who actually knew their stuff when it came to what Jemma was studying unlike her. So she researched a lot and thankfully got recommend somewhere by another mom with a child with similar support needs to Jemma. That school seemed to work a lot better, Jemma settled in more and had a fantastic support network in place including a tutor that she got on well with and she was so proud of seeing her girl flourish in her new environment.

Skye attend a school specifically for autistic kids and/or those with learning disabilities. It had been a tough choice but May knew deep down that Skye, given she had also come from a traumatic start to life before she was adopted, needed the extra support and slightly more adaptive environment that could fit her different needs to that of her sisters. Skye was non verbal, at first they weren’t sure if this may have been caused by or a reaction to the trauma but it was part of her autism. At first she was lashing out regularly, mostly in speech therapy which May had put her in with the best intentions but later found was one of the causes to her anger. Her school helped by letting her use an AAC device whilst she was there, and she seemed to take to it instantly. She still preferred to use non verbal cues at certain times, May had learnt which different noises and gestures meant different things but for general things or questions the technology proved invaluable and Skye seemed to gain confidence with being able to communicate her needs more effectively, plus the fact the girl seemed naturally gifted with tech and had managed to hack the app into being able to do and say all sorts. Naturally, she still got told off when she used it to say rude words or moan about something but May was secretly glad that her daughters more playful side was coming out more with being able to express herself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments, kudos and love on the last chapter, I’m excited to write more of this. Please continue to let me know what you think if you are enjoying it.

They reached home and May parked the car, opening Jemma’s door she simply slid out from her seat, took her backpack when it was handed to her and made her way up the stairs, still wearing her ear defenders. May wondered if she had gotten her assessment about how Jemma’s day had been wrong, vowing to have a chat with her 10 year old later on. The girl had skipped forward to 7th grade and it had been harder than excepted to adjust, not to the workload or complexity of the work as Jemma could easily handle that but to the social side and being the youngest by a clear margin often made way for some unpleasantness from the other kids. May hoped that now at least with Jemma getting the right help and support things would improve but there was always going to be a longer adjustment period particularly due to her being autistic.

Melinda snapped back from her thoughts at a tug on her shirt and a slight whine, realising that Skye was trying to get her attention so that she would help her. Skye was currently in 3rd grade as she was 8 years old, thankfully her school catered for the full age range so she didn’t have to worry about needing to move her now that she was settled. She undid the girls seat belt, she still sat in a booster seat given her fairly small stature and struggled with fine motor skills as she had weakness in her wrists which was believed to be down to multiple injuries sustained in her old home. It made Melinda shudder when she thought about how badly her baby girl had been treated, scooping her up and holding the girls backpack in her other hand as they made their way into the house. 

Jemma was nowhere to be seen, though her school backpack was where it always sat by the stairs and May noticed her usual after school snack pile was down one which meant she had gone upstairs. She decided to leave the girl alone for a little while to decompress before going up to check on her, putting Skye down on the couch she handed her the tablet and put Skye’s backpack down by her sisters.

“Can I watch tv mommy? Please” Skye typed, giving her best smile after the voice had finished reading it out. May laughed softly and ruffled her hair, nodding.  
“Sure baby, I’m going to check on Jemma but would you like a snack?” She said, smiling when Skye nodded she handed the girl the tv remote and went into the kitchen. Skye put the Disney channel on and settled down happily. May dipped out to get some snacks and dropped them off with her before going up to see Jemma. 

Jemma was curled up on her bed when May entered the room, the ear defenders were on her desk now but a weighted blanket was spread across her small form. May sat down on the edge of the bed, looking to her when the girl lifted her head. “Are you okay sweetheart?” She asked and Jemma sighed, ringing her hands together nervously. She clearly was reluctant to share what was on her mind, which worried May slightly.  
“Has something happened at school?” Melinda prompted, trying to figure out what was upsetting her as she wanted to help. Jemma shook her head, sitting up more she pulled the blanket onto her lap. 

“I saw this boy....” Jemma began and May felt her stomach drop, praying that her girl hadn’t started being bullied again but the real admission was heartbreaking “He was walking past the car when you had gone to pick up Skye. He looked so much like...my brother” Tears were dripping down Jemma’s face now as May gestured to ask if she could before pulling her into a hug, sitting the girl up on lap as she gently rubbed her back in a way she knew Jemma found soothing. She knew Jemma had been placed in care after her parents and brother had been killed in a car crash, and had been struggling a lot still when May was in the process of adopting her. You could never get over that sort of thing, but at least now she could have proper support to deal with her feelings. It was clear something like she had experienced today could still bring to the surface that sadness again. Melinda gently rocked Jemma as she held her on her lap, rubbing her back in soothing circles.

“It’s okay, it’s okay to be sad Jemma” she reminded the girl quietly “I’m sorry that happened to upset you, and I know you miss him. But I’m sure you’re doing him proud, he would’ve wanted you to be happy and thriving”

May heard small footsteps and looked over to the door to see Skye stood her, a teddy bear under one arm and her tablet in the other.  
“Is sissy okay?” The device asked, her pet name for Jemma making the older girl smile a tiny bit and she shifted to one knee allowing Skye to hop up onto Mays lap too. May held them close, kissing both of their foreheads.  
“She’s just a little sad, but it’s okay. We’re here to look after her aren’t we?” May said and Skye nodded “I’m here for both of you, because we’re a family now”


	3. Chapter 3

May looked at the two girls in the backseat of the car, so glad that the adoption was finalised and she could bring them home permanently. They had already been visiting her and she hoped that would help ease them into a routine but she knew there was going to be a transitional period. At first her plan had only been to adopt one child but these had been inseparable even in care they refused to be separated yet it was hard enough that most people didn't want one child with special needs let alone two. May knew that it was fate to look after them both, they had just connected with her. 

Skye was the more outwardly affectionate, a big fan of hugs. The social worker had tried to move her away and apologise when at their first introduction the girl had made a beeline for Melinda and clung tightly to her, but Melinda simply picked her up and held her whilst they were discussing her case file. They seemed to fall into a natural rhythm and during stop over visits at Melinda’s house whilst she was going through the assessment stage Skye had always wanted her to stay by her bedside until she fell asleep. 

Jemma was still affectionate but in a different way. Being a couple years older than her then-6 year old counterpart, the trauma of losing her family was still fresh in her mind so she seemed more closed off and guarded, like part of her believed this was still all just a dream and they would come back. She stood in the doorway for the entirety of their first meeting, shaking her head no at any attempts by the social worker to bring her into the room. The woman had tried to take her hand and force her in but Melinda had told her not to. This had upset Jemma at first because she thought that the woman only Skye and even though she knew deep down the girl wouldn’t want to leave without her she felt like she would end up encouraging her to because she didn’t want to be the thing holding Skye back from a loving family. Melinda had to slowly gain her trust but it was worthwhile, still Jemma never wanted hugs or kisses unless she gave her permission first, she was never the one to initiate them but she had her own ways of showing affection. Melinda kept hold of every handmade card and gift and teared up when the girl wrote a beautiful piece about her for her “someone I admire” homework assignment.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Melinda and girls spend their weekend together as a family, however things don’t go according to plan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in updating this fic, however I hope that you enjoy this chapter. Your feedback is really appreciated by me and I’m so happy that people have enjoyed this so far.

Sorting out some plans for their weekend was generally more complex than it was for most families. There was a list of things that they just couldn’t do due to the girls finding it sensory hell and there being no suitable coping methods that would help. A few of these Melinda had found out the hard way - like the time they tried to go to the movies which ended up in Jemma trying to hide under her seat screaming from sensory overload and Skye nearly ended up throwing her tablet in frustration, the snide comments about her using it when she was talking to them before the film came on didn’t exactly help. May couldn’t believe the attitudes of some people - she knew that possibly they didn’t have any experience with autistic children and just thought her girls were being troublemakers but really they were struggling with the sensory input and trying to process it any way they could, the methods when it got this bad though could often be destructive. May wouldn’t see herself as a “perfect” parent in any sense, she was still learning as this proved but she was open and willing to learn, knowing now the difference between an unavoidable meltdown and when they actually were just being naughty.

The two girls were sat on the floor with a big pad of paper between them, both doodling with some coloured markers. Jemma’s drawings were often very intricate - scientific diagrams with accurate labelling and everything had to be accurate. Skye’s drawings were more just freeform scribbles, she was more into just making a colourful mess but enjoyed doing so. She watched them for a moment with a smile before interrupting, sitting on the couch by them.

“What do you girls fancy doing this weekend?” May asked them. Skye got up and sat beside her, jumping onto the couch with a thud which made Melinda roll her eyes though lovingly and ask the girl to be more careful next time. Jemma stayed sat down on the floor, intent on finishing her diagram first. Daisy took advantage of the extra time whilst Jemma was still busy to cuddle up to Mays side, her head on her moms shoulder. May turned slightly to kiss Skye’s forehead.

“Do you have any ideas baby?” She asked. Skye grunted, not wanting to move and retrieve her tablet but May had her prompt cards on the table next to the couch. She picked up the bunch relevant to the topic and handed them over, letting Skye choose one or two of the activity cards. Jemma had just finished her diagram and gotten up when Skye had picked a card and the girl hid it in her pocket. May wondered why at first and was about to question her when she passed the remaining cards to Jemma for her sister to pick one too.

“Ah, are you both going to pick one each?” Melinda asked and Skye nodded, settling back against Melinda with her head on the woman’s chest “That’s a good idea, well done Skye”

Skye made a content noise at the praise, happy to just let Melinda hug her whilst Jemma decided. Eventually, she had picked one and they both showed them to Melinda. Jemma wanted to go to the library and Skye just wanted to play with the sensory table they had set up recently. Melinda smiled at the choices, they seemed to fit her girls perfectly, and actually she had just gotten a few extra bits whilst they were at school the other day for the sensory table so that there was some more element of choice. 

“Well, we could go to the library today and play with the table for a little bit when we get home and tomorrow?” She suggested and both girls seemed happy with this. Jemma rushed off to get her coat and bag, excitement apparent at a trip to her favourite place. Melinda helped Skye into her own coat, handing the girl her own bag though looking a little surprised when the brunette simply threw it on the ground.

“Skye, we don’t throw things that aren’t made for throwing” Melinda reminded her and picked up the bag “Don’t you want to take your bag with you?”

The little girl shook her head, she was holding her prompt cards and it seemed she didn’t want to be using her tablet anyway. Melinda packed the spare tablet just in case, smiling at Skye when she held up the “I’m sorry” card and opening her arms for a hug that the little one gratefully received. 

“Thank you for apologising, next time if you don’t want to take your bag then you can ask me if you need it. If not, then you don’t have to. But throwing it isn’t the right answer” Melinda told her, still a little insecure in her parenting even now but hoping the situation had been handled well. She opened the front door and let Jemma run in front to get in the car whilst she carried Skye, she didn’t do that often anymore due to the girl getting older and her back was getting older too but it was ok for the occasional short trip. They all got settled and then Melinda drove them to the library.

“Stay where I can see you, Jemma” Melinda warned as the older girl made a beeline for the building. She waited slightly impatiently inside, tapping her watch.

“Mama, since I’m a big girl now...” Jemma’s sentence started and May had to hold in a smile at the little bit of sass mixed with pride in her older daughters voice “Can I please sit in the science section if you want to see the kids books with Skye? I will promise I’ll sit quietly and not talk to strangers”

“Of course, so long as you don’t leave the library itself. We will just stay in the kids section if you need us, otherwise I’ll pick you up in a bit” Melinda said and Jemma’s beamed at her, they arranged a time and Jemma thanked her before happily going off to the science section. Melinda guided Skye to the children’s section, it was a little busier than usual given it was a weekend and raining outside so more people were likely to take shelter there. Thankfully, Melinda had come prepared with things to help and took out the ear defenders from her bag, offering them to Skye. The girl slipped them over her ears and sighed in relief, leaning against May and squeezing her arm by way of thanks. 

“Shall we pick a book to read? What kind of book would you like today?” Melinda asked and guided Skye to her usual section. The girl was slightly behind her age level in terms of reading ability, though this just meant she didn’t really enjoy books that were too long or had too many words per page. 

Melinda was sat on a comfy chair in the kids section with Skye on her lap, slowly making their way through a book about dinosaurs when she felt a tap on her shoulder and looked up. There was a female security guard stood there and she was holding Jemma by the back of the collar of her shirt which instantly made a tiny bit of anger rise in Melindas throat.

“Excuse me, m’am, but is this child yours?” The security guard asked and Melinda nodded, standing up she put Skye back down on the seat and reassured her everything was okay for a moment before turning back to the guard.

“Yes she’s mine, so you can let go of her now” Melinda said, offering her hand towards Jemma who took it tightly with both hands, tears still gently rolling down her flustered cheeks. Thankfully the guard was satisfied this would stop Jemma from running away and so released her grip, the girl then slumped forward into Melindas embrace. 

“She was making a nuisance of herself, shouting at people and ignoring commands given to her. Please see to that she’s properly supervised next time otherwise she will be banned from entering this building. As it happens, she now just has a temporary ban of one week and is disallowed from borrowing any books” The guard said, spotting the girl still had a book in her hands the woman forcefully took it off her. This made Jemma fall into meltdown mode and May carefully moved her hands to just resting on the girls shoulders, she was stood sideways to still keep an eye on Skye and the girl stood up, shakily removing her ear defenders and slipping them onto Jemma’s ears. The girl didn’t acknowledge it, but it did decrease the rate she was scratching at her bare arms, her coat clearly still back wherever she had been sitting.

“Why was she shouting at people? It’s possible she only ignored your commands because they were unachievable for her” Melinda tried to explain though the security guard clearly though Jemma was trying to make her angry again and looked ready to kick them out permanently 

“She was trying to stop people from talking, but it’s not her job to do so”

Melinda sighed and looked down to her girl, she didn’t like disclosing their autism without making sure the girls were ok with it first but sometimes it was necessary to avoid situations like this.

“Jemma is autistic. It’s possible the noise and people breaking the rules was causing her distress. She would’ve questioned you telling her to stop but not out of a lack of respect, more that she simply thought she was doing right by enforcing the rules”

Melinda hoped she had explained it well enough, the guard simply shrugged and added an “keep an eye on her next time” before walking off. Melinda then finally could switch her full attention back to Jemma, who was now just back to leaning against Melinda with quiet sobs. Melinda noticed the ear defenders and looked back at Skye, smiling at her.

“Thank you for lending your ear defenders to your sister, it’s a big help” Melinda said and Skye smiled back, walking over to them and nuzzling Melinda’s shoulder. She took both girls hands and lead them out, making sure they had everything first. Thankfully Jemma was still wearing her bag, she would have suggested going back to get the girls coat but knew it would upset Jemma to go back to where the problem had occurred and sometimes sacrifices had to be made, not like it was her only coat or she couldn’t buy a new one for her.

They were all settled in the car, Jemma had asked for Mays help with getting in though Melinda wondered if she just needed some extra reassurance. She checked Skye’s seatbelt before going to help Jemma. She managed to mostly lift the girl onto her booster seat and was doing up the seatbelt when Jemma spoke.

“Sorry I ruined our day Mama” the girl said quietly and Melinda felt her stomach drop, she didn’t want Jemma to feel so guilty about today.

“Baby, sometimes these things just happen. It’s just part of your life. But it can be upsetting for you, and I’m sorry it happened today. We can find a way to make it better for next time” Melinda said, pressing a kiss to Jemma’s forehead. As they made their way back to the house, with Disney music on that Skye had requested and Jemma didn’t seem to mind since she was still wearing the ear defenders, May thought about the extra challenges involved in raising her girls. She wished that it didn’t have to be like this, didn’t have to be that society was often the major cause of making scenarios happen or get so bad. It made her feel powerless to help them. However, what she could do was always fight for their rights and ensure a safe respectful environment wherever possible.


End file.
